Mungalla Wetlands Blue Carbon Restoration Project

Mungalla Wetlands Blue Carbon Restoration Project is a tidal restoration project located at Mungalla Station, approximately 12 kilometres east of the sugar cane township of Ingham in North Queensland. It was registered in September 2026 and covers 250.83 hectares.

Tidal Restoration of Blue Carbon Ecosystem projects involve removing or modifying one or more tidal restriction mechanisms (such as earth bunds or levees) to re-introduce tidal flows to coastal wetlands. This process reduces greenhouse gas emissions from previously freshwater environments and significantly boosts the long-term sequestration of carbon within estuarine soils and vegetation, a process known as blue carbon storage.

The Ingham region is strongly characterised by sugarcane farming and cattle grazing. The area experiences a tropical climate with high annual rainfall, averaging over 1,350 mm per year. The regional coastal wetlands predominantly consist of deep, gradational clay soils and hydrosols perfectly suited for estuarine ecosystems.

This project is deeply intertwined with cultural and ecological restoration. Mungalla Station is owned by the Mungalla Aboriginal Corporation for Business, representing the Nywaigi Traditional Owners, who inherited a landscape degraded by historical land management practices. Over a century ago, a bund wall was constructed to expand cattle grazing, which inadvertently blocked tidal flows and caused the saline wetlands to become a freshwater system choked with invasive weeds like olive hymenachne. By removing these restrictions, the project not only sequesters carbon but also rehabilitates vital habitat for fish and aquatic birdlife, improves water quality flowing into the Great Barrier Reef, and creates economic opportunities for the Traditional Owners through award-winning eco-tourism.